In reading and watching a great many fantasy-based stories, something that often comes up is the usefulness of silver as a protection and a weapon against dark forces and evil creatures. I started to wonder why: why silver? What made that so magical in the eyes of ancient peoples? I decided to see what the internet has to say about it.

Quite a lot, as it turns out. My problem came in that many of the websites I found were new-age, or Wiccan, and while they made various statements about the uses of silver they gave no citations. Where were they getting their information? Do they even know, or is it just assumed, passed down from whoever taught them? It’s been a somewhat frustrating search.  However, for better or worse here are some things I have learned about the myth-based properties of silver.

Starting in the real world, apparently silver has the highest electrical conductivity of any element. It is also antibacterial, which is why it is often used in wound dressings. Sterling silver is actually silver blended with copper – this makes a harder substance than regular silver. These properties may in part be at the root of some of the magical properties ancient cultures believed silver to have.

It was often used in rituals and spells, and is said to have lunar energy, the feminine power of dreams and intuition. (The moon has a silver colour so it seems logical ancient peoples would have connected the two.) Moon goddesses often used silver weapons, for example. Silver wards off evil spirits, provides psychic protection, and can be used in divination. Wearing silver can assist with emotional stability, intuition and spiritual perception. It can increase psychic ability, support healing, and facilitate energy flow. The reflective nature of silver meant it could be used to repel a psychic attack. The purifying and preserving nature of silver meant it was good for storage of holy water, the better to preserve the holiness.

Silver, naturally a great conductor, is said to be a great conductor of magic. It is a good substance for the making of magical tools. Folk tales say mirrors, crosses and weapons should be of pure silver, as pure silver is considered pure. In the sixteenth century musket balls were sometimes made from melted down church bells, which contained traces of silver.

Werewolves, whose affliction comes out during the full moon, are vulnerable to silver, the moon metal. The musket balls with silver may be the origin for werewolves being killed with silver bullets.  

Vampires, too, can be vulnerable to silver. They can suffer agony or even death on contact. This may potentially come from the fact that mirrors were backed with silver in the past. So, a demon who cannot cast a reflection will be harmed by a mirror.

Silver could harm other monsters besides werewolves and vampires. Silver amulets worn, or nailed above the door, were said the repel demons and vengeful spirits. Silver dust or filings scattered across thresholds could prevent the entrance of fairies and other supernatural beings. (Salt does this too, and I can’t help but think salt would be cheaper.) Elemental spirits, being composed of one substance only (such as water) could be injured by silver entering their form. Silver could detect poison, and was able to help a user transition to the realm of the fairies.

Silver is also said to promote healing, which may have originated in the antimicrobial properties of silver. (Ancient cultures would not have known why, but could have observed the benefits of silver, and concluded it had magical power.)  Folk healers will use silver leaf bandages because of this healing property. Homeric Greece mentions silver balms to treat battlefield wounds. Chinese folklore held that ingesting powdered silver could extend life, restore youth, and even revive the dead.

Ancient Egypt associated silver with the moon. It symbolized power, authority and divine protection. It would be used in jewellery and amulets for protection and blessing, and was used in religious ceremonies and offerings.

Native American tribes saw silver as a connection to the natural world. It had properties of spiritual healing and purification, and could help in connecting with the ancestors.

In China, silver was the sign of wealth and prosperity, bestowing good luck and financial success. It would be made into jewellery, bowls, or coins, to use as gifts and offerings during important festivals.

Greek and Roman tradition associated silver with the moon goddesses Selene and Luna. Silver was symbolically connected to the night and was a sign of divine femininity. Silver would be fashioned into coins for religious ceremonies and offerings to the gods.

Islamic tradition regards silver as a noble metal, and a symbol of purity and the divinity of light.

Silver is a favourite of modern writers and game designers for fantastical stories to do battle against evil creatures. For example, Tolkien writes of the weapons of the elf city Gondolin shining with silver light, and the wizard Gandalf’s spells bursting with silver light, injuring or killing the servants of Morgoth or Sauron.

Ultimately there is a lot written about silver and it’s magical, mystical, mythological aspects. I believe many of these traditions are so longstanding that there is unlikely to be a way to pinpoint an origin for these beliefs. So, if you enjoy such stories, silver has a lot more to offer than silver bullets for werewolves.

Bibliography

Silver: Folklore, Healing & Magickal Uses

https://www.learnreligions.com/magical-metals-2561486

https://mythicalcreaturetales.com/silver-mythical-creatures-2

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver#Symbolic_role

 Citations:

·  Jackson, Robert (1995). Witchcraft and the Occult. Devizes, Quintet Publishing. p. 25. ISBN 978-1-85348-888-7.

·  ·  Стойкова, Стефана. “Дельо хайдутин”. Българска народна поезия и проза в седем тома (in Bulgarian). Vol. Т. III. Хайдушки и исторически песни. Варна: ЕИ “LiterNet”. ISBN 978-954-304-232-6.

·  St. Clair, Kassia (2016). The Secret Lives of Colour. London: John Murray. p. 49. ISBN 9781473630819. OCLC 936144129.